How Balanced is your Life?

Many people believe if they just had more money, a better job, a new car or more time in their lives, they would be fulfilled. We are often in search that “thing” that will make us happy. We hear a lot about work/life balance but what does that really mean? What does your life consist of; home, family, work, social life? Work is really only a small piece of your life pie but consumes a large chunk of your time so it becomes very significant. Often it is tough to see the reality of our lives.

This balance wheel breaks up your life into 8 very important segments. Take a moment to click the link and print this off. Within each piece imagine there are 10 sections to a triangle and 10 is the outer edge. Add a dot in each segment at number 1 through 10 to represent how you feel about your success in that part of your life. Rank 1 closest to the centre of the pie if that is an area requiring a lot of work or half way up the pie at 5 or 6 if you believe you have reached a middle of the road place in that area of your life or 10 being the best it could be. You get the idea. Once you have done that, take a pencil and make a circle joining all the dots around the wheel.

Take a look at your wheel now and determine if it would roll like a tire and be nicely balanced or imagine driving down the road with a tire in the shape you are looking at. Would it be a flat wheel, lumpy wheel, very small wheel or a large wheel with your pieces all closer to 10? Really think about each piece of this pie and how your life would look if you were able to improve some of the lower ranked areas.

What goals could you set for yourself in order to have a more gratifying life? Do you need to save or invest more money? Do you need to exercise more or get a regular massage? Do you need to read more, take a course or learn to meditate? How about more social time, less work time, date nights with your significant other or family dinners? Is it time to rearrange the furniture and declutter your house? Many things will come to mind that would help create a happier, healthier YOU!

Not having time to do whatever it takes to balance your life is a choice. We can all make things fit if we choose to. How important is it to you? How important is it to your family and those who care about you. Are you the best person you can be if you have areas in your life that are seriously lacking attention?

While true balance is virtually impossible, rounding out the wheel is essential to reducing the pressure of trying to get through life on flat tires.

I would love to hear from you. Please try the exercise and provide comments on this post.

Remember, you only have one life to live; make it SO Full of LIFE!!

“I’ve learned that you can’t have everything and do everything at the same time.”